THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 16, 1995 TAG: 9507140209
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 26 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BRYAN JOHNSTON, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Long : 112 lines
ALTHOUGH HIGH school football season is still a few months away, some local players are getting a jump on the start of mid-August practices by participating in a community passing league.
All five areas of Chesapeake - Deep Creek, Great Bridge, Indian River, South Norfolk, and Western Branch - are taking part. The first-time league is sponsored by the Deep Creek Football Association.
``It's a good summer activity,'' Deep Creek coach Jerry Carter said. ``It gives the kids an opportunity to play some football and work on their skills.''
The idea for a passing league is a new one in the Southeastern District, although Norfolk had one last year and Virginia Beach is in its second season. Richmond has had an active passing league for the past five years.
``I'm just glad we're finally doing this league,'' said Great Bridge coach Phil Webb. ``It's a plus for the city and a good activity that the kids enjoy.''
The games are similar to regular season contests, with a few important differences. Each team has seven players on the field, as opposed to 11. The offense has five eligible receivers, a center, and a quarterback; the defense has seven backs.
The offense takes the ball on its own 30 yard line and is allowed four downs to make a 20-yard gain. On fourth down, the offense can either go for the first down, punt, or mark off 30 yards before giving the ball over to the other team.
Instead of tackling, the game is played with a one-hand touch rule, with the touch required to be below the neck. A touch on the neck or head results in a 15-yard personal foul and possible ejection.
The quarterback has four seconds to throw the ball or he is charged with a sack. There is no defensive rush of the quarterback allowed.
The league uses the normal scoring system and teams play two 20-minute halves with a running clock. The games are officiated by Southeastern District referees.
In the opening week of action, Western Branch faced Great Bridge, while Indian River took on Oscar Smith. Deep Creek had the night off.
The Bruins used a Walton scoring connection - quarterback Daryl to receiver Darren - and two more touchdown passes to Shyrone Stith and Calvin Diggs to defeat Great Bridge, 20-0.
``I knew we'd be able to throw the ball because we have good skill players. The big question mark was to see if we had people on defense who would go to the ball,'' said Western Branch coach Lew Johnston.
``It was a good start. I'm glad to see the opportunity to compete in the offseason, and the kids had fun.''
Webb didn't have a lot of expectations going into the game, but wanted to see the kids enjoy themselves.
``We were ragged and it was our first time,'' Webb said. ``I saw a lot of positives and the kids saw things they need to work on.''
In the second game, Indian River had to come from behind to defeat Oscar Smith, 14-12. The Tigers took the lead with less than two minutes left to play, but the Braves answered with a 70-yard touchdown bomb from James Boyd to Anthony Cason as time expired.
``I didn't have a lot of expectations because I didn't know who was going to show up,'' said Indian River coach Bob Parker, who had 18 players attend. ``Half of our skilled people weren't here because of other commitments. This is good because it gets their minds off of baseball and basketball and gets them thinking about football.''
For new Oscar Smith coach Bill Lyons, the league is a great opportunity to see what talent the Tigers have before practice officially opens.
``I came out here to look at people and have a good time. I get to work with the kids, and we get to go against better competition than if we went one-on-one,'' he said. ``All of the players hustled and were aggressive, and I saw a lot of good speed and effort. I wanted to see how well they would react to adversity, and I think they bounced back well.''
WEEK TWO: Great Bridge was kept off the scoreboard for the second straight week, falling 7-0 to Group AAA state runner-up Deep Creek (1-0). Western Branch (2-0) continued to impress on both sides of the ball, recording a second shutout with a 20-0 win over Oscar Smith (0-2).
Indian River had the night off.
WEEK THREE: Oscar Smith got its first win, 20-13, over Deep Creek. The Tigers struck early on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Jamar Lewis to William Cox. Deep Creek returned the favor when Chad Sorrell connected with Kendall Watson on a 15-yard touchdown pass.
Oscar Smith led at the half after a 42-yard touchdown pass from Brian Lewis to Moses Johnson, and took a 20-7 lead when Jamar Lewis hit Antonio Johnson with a 32-yard scoring pass.
The Hornets (1-1) closed the gap on a Sorrell-to-Darryl Huskey touchdown, but Oscar Smith (1-2) held on to the leads down the stretch.
``This (league) helps both the mental and physical parts of my game, and it gives us a chance to figure out what's going to happen during the season,'' said Jamar Lewis.
In the nightcap, Indian River defeated Western Branch, 16-14. The Bruins hadn't allowed a score in the first two games, but the Braves (2-0) quickly put an end to that drought, taking an 8-0 lead at the half on a James Boyd touchdown pass to Lance Bishop, and a two-point conversion.
Western Branch (2-1) tied the game at 8-8 on Daryl Walton's 1-yard pass to Malik Cook, but Indian River retaliated with a 70-yard touchdown pass from Boyd to Anthony Cason to lead 16-8.
The Bruins made the game interesting when Walton and Cook connected for a second touchdown, but the two-point try was batted away and Indian River held on to the win.
The league allows the squads to ``see what other teams have on offense and defense,'' said Cook. ``It lets us warm up and puts us back in the mood (for football) so we're not dry in August.''
On Wednesday, Western Branch will face Deep Creek and Indian River takes on Great Bridge. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
Oscar Smith coach Bill Lyons talks with player Jamar Lewis, whose
3-yard touchdown pass helped defeat Deep Creek 20-13.
by CNB